TechnoEarthMama

In case you missed it, yesterday’s post was a contest.  Guest blogger and author Christina Katz posted about why one should write a book, and she asked readers to comment on why they wanted to write a book.  All commenters on that post were eligible for a drawing. The winner, by random drawing, is Erin [...]

Last spring, I invested part of my tax refund in a class called Writing and Publishing the Short Stuff (especially for moms), because I am a mom, and I wanted to get published. The instructor was Christina Katz (who continues to teach this class). Before the class was even over I’d sold my first piece [...]

Today we have a guest!  It’s J.A. Konrath (Joe), author of soon-to-be-released horror novel Afraid and of the Lt. Jack Daniels mystery series (Whiskey Sour, Bloody Mary, etc.).  Joe is on a blog book tour to promote Afraid, which I’m looking forward to reading.  Here’s a blurb from Joe’s newsletter: Welcome to Safe Haven, Wisconsin. [...]

I usually stay away from blog gimmicks that are designed to increase traffic.  I don’t do those 25-things-type memes (which have been around for several years; I used to have a text widget on my blog stating “I don’t do memes”).  I’m not interested in blog carnivals — I barely understand them anyway.  But I [...]

It’s a gray, damp, cloudy sort of Sunday afternoon, so of course we went to the library. Yes, in Portland, the library is open on Sunday.  The Gresham, Hollywood, Hillsdale, and Midland branches are open from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.  Why?  Because we’re readers in Portland.  There are statistics about it, which I’m not [...]

Oscar the Pig: Mommy Goes to Work, by Megan Calhoun, is a picture book for younger children intended to help them deal with separation anxiety. The book opens with Oscar contemplating his mother’s impending departure for work, which is a new experience for him. “Who will take care of him? Will she come home? Does [...]

I’ve usually got at least two books going at once — a novel for bedtime and fun, and some sort of non-fiction book. This week, I finished one of each, and in each I found a quotable quote that I really wanted to share. The first is from The Yiddish Policemen’s Union, by Michael Chabon. [...]

Reading The Dark Is Rising is a holiday tradition for me. This is when the book takes place. It begins on Midwinter’s Eve. For us, the winter solstice is considered the official beginning of winter, but in the pagan tradition, it’s Midwinter. So, the book begins on the night before the solstice, and ends on [...]